Learning to Live Again
by DawnDreamer86
Summary: Amber wasn't always like this - unfriendly and closed off. This new world did it to her. She won't talk much about her life before the group met her. First, some of them don't trust her. But, they begin to let her in, some even get close with her, but she still has so many secrets. What happens when the truth gets revealed and they learn who she really is? Eventual Daryl/OC


**This is my first story on this website, but I have been writing fanfics for years. This is, however, my first The Walking Dead story. I will be following the basic outline of the show, but dialogue will be original for the most part and there might be some things added to include my OC of course. Please follow/favorite and review! Constructive criticism is always welcome.**

**I only own my OC!**

* * *

It had been a month or so. She had been doing fine on her own for the past month. She had stayed always on the move and was careful. So, how did she get herself into this situation now?

Another groan alerted her that another one of those monsters had joined the group of three already surrounding her. She had taken out two at a time before, but never more than that. Now there were four getting closer and she knew she was in trouble.

_If there are more than you can handle….just run. _The words of advice she once been given replayed in her mind. They were coming at her from the front and sides, so her only option was to turn around and go back the way she had come. That meant heading back to the road. She hated to do it, the roads weren't safe. Nowhere was particularly safe these days, but she tended to stay off the roads as much as possible.

Not having time to give it anymore thought, she turned and ran. _I would have much rather killed all four of them,_ she thought as she ran. It was kind of sick how she enjoyed killing them these days. It was a great way to relieve stress and anger though. Anger was something she had a lot of too.

She could see the road up ahead a good ten minutes later. She slowed to a quick walk, wanting to get to the road and figure out her next move. All she had on her was her small pack with her weapons, some clothes, and the little bit of food and water she had left. She would need to go on a run again by tomorrow. The groans had faded off into the distance, so she knew she had a good enough lead on those monsters. _Monsters…_ funny she still called them that after all this time. Her thoughts were suddenly cut short when she heard the sound of car doors being shut and voices in the distance.

She crouched low and peeked around a tree. A caravan of cars, including an RV, had pulled over to the side of the road. There was a decent sized group of people standing around talking in hushed voices. She watched as a man was brought out of the RV and set down against a tree. _He doesn't look so good; _she squinted trying to get a better look, _bet he's bit._

Her thoughts were pretty much confirmed as the other members of the group took turns speaking to the man by the tree, saying their goodbyes. She let out a sigh and wished they would hurry up and be on their way so she could come out from hiding. She would not let it be known she was here. Groups were a bad idea. This new world had brought out the worst in people, she had seen it. The only person you could trust was yourself.

The sound of a twig snapping behind her made her turn around. One of the dead came stumbling out from behind a bush just to her right.

_Shit._

She grabbed for a weapon. Her knife would do for this one. She could take it down quietly and that group just down the road wouldn't notice.

The man – or what used to be a man, anyway – was coming closer. As soon as it was within arm's length she stabbed it through the eye. It fell to the ground with a _thud._ She held her breath, hoping those people hadn't heard anything.

Daring to take another look, she peered around the tree again. Her first thought was that no one seemed to have taken notice. Then she saw a man with a crossbow scanning the tree line her way. She quickly ducked back behind the tree. _Had he heard or seen her_?

"Daryl, you see something?" she heard a voice saying.

"Nah, thought I heard sumthin' … musta been a squirrel though," another voice replied.

_Daryl must be that guy with the crossbow. _She was amazed he had heard anything at all. She took a few deep breaths trying to calm her beating heart. _I'm glad they can't hear that or I'd be caught for sure_!

Unfortunately, her problems weren't over yet. More "monsters" were now headed from where she had run from earlier. Whether these were the same ones who had been chasing her or not, she could not tell. She didn't have time to figure it out either. She was going to be surrounded again, but if she ran out into the road the group would see her. She had a decision to make, and she didn't like either choice.

She started to back up into the road, choosing to let her presence be known to the group. _Either they will help me get rid of these monsters so I can slip away while they are fighting, or they will leave me alone and I will fight them off myself and then run for it, _she thought. As she stepped out onto the road, she glanced quickly at the group. A few were looking her way, but no one had made a move toward her yet. As soon as the first monster came into view, however, several men ran over with weapons.

She took the first one down before the men reached her. By then, several more monsters had come out of the tree line. The men made quick work of them, though. Unfortunately her plan had not worked as she had hoped. There were too many men who had come to help her, and not enough monsters to make the fight last long enough for her to slip away. She swallowed the lump in her throat and turned toward the men.

"Thanks for the help, I'll just be on my way…." she turned on her heel to leave.

"Hold on there, just a second!" She felt a hand on her shoulder. She jumped and grabbed her gun from the waistband of her jeans. She turned around quickly and pointed it at the man who had touched her.

"Get your hands off of me!" Her dark eyes burned holes into the man in front of her. She saw from his attire that he was a police officer, _or stole a police uniform. _Not that it made a difference in today's world.

He held up his hands and backed away a few steps from her.

"Okay, Okay…I'm sorry, I didn't mean to frighten you. I just thought I would make sure you were alright. Help you get back to your group maybe?" He sounded so sincere that it caught her off guard.

The other 3 men that had come to help her - an Asian looking man, the man with the crossbow, and a big black man - all had their weapons raised at her now. She was outnumbered. There was no way out of this one, so she decided to play along. Maybe if she did what they wanted, she could sneak away while they slept. If, of course, they kept her alive that long.

"I don't have a group…I'm alone," she lowered her weapon and sighed. She had just broken THE biggest rule. _Never tell anyone you are alone, it makes you an easy target!_

The other men lowered their weapons, now that she didn't seem to be as much of a threat as before.

"Pfft…YOU survived out here on yer own? For how long… a day!?" Crossbow man looked her up and down.

"Not that it's any of YOUR business; but, no I have been on my own for… much longer," she looked back at him in disgust. She wanted to tell him how long, to prove him wrong. However, she kept her mouth shut. Better to not let anyone know any details about her.

"I'm sorry to hear that young lady, I'm Rick Grimes by the way, and you are?"

_Oh great! Mr. Nice Policeman is asking questions. Keep it vague._

"Amber," was the only response she gave.

"Well, Amber, we really need to get going before anymore walkers show up. Why don't you join us? It's not just us men, we have woman and children too, in case that makes you feel more comfortable." Rick explained.

"I don't do groups…" she started, but was cut short by Rick.

"You would be safer. There is safety in numbers. You would have others to protect you, for the times when you need it. We are heading to the CDC now, to see if we can get some answers. I'm sure you would like some answers too…right?"

She wanted to argue with him. It was probably a trap. As soon as she let her guard down, they would steal her supplies…or worse. Then again, she had seen the woman and children he spoke of. It wasn't like those other groups she had come across, the ones with only men in them.

Rick seemed like a nice guy. She knew he could be putting on a show, but for some reason she didn't think that was the case. She still didn't trust these people, but she did want answers. The CDC didn't sound like a bad idea at all.

"Okay, but only to the CDC. After we get our answers, I'm out!" She finally responded.

He visibly relaxed, "Fair enough. I just didn't feel right leaving you out here alone is all."

She nodded as they made their way back to the cars. During the short walk Rick introduced the other men to her. She learned that crossbow man was in fact Daryl, the Asian kid was Glenn, and the big man was T-Dog.

When they reached the caravan, Rick went to speak to an older looking man in the RV. The man exited the driver's seat and followed Rick out to the group.

"Amber, this here is Dale. He would be more than happy to let you ride with him," Rick smiled at her. She didn't smile back and only shrugged.

"Thank you, Dale" she said.

"There is plenty of room, no bother at all! Glad to have you with us," he stuck is hand out to her. She shook it and followed him to the RV. Everyone went to their respective vehicles and they were on their way.

* * *

During the ride, Amber kept to herself in the back of the RV. She pulled her long brown hair into a bun, and piled it on top of her head. She sighed as she checked her reflection in the window. It had been so long since she had even taken the time to look at herself. Her face had thinned out dramatically and she had dark circles under her eyes. Her face was covered in dirt and blood. She supposed it didn't matter what she looked like anymore. She had been alone for so long that she had stopped caring. She hadn't had time for petty things like baths and hairbrushes. She probably wouldn't be with this group long enough for it to matter either.

A few hours later, the caravan pulled to a stop.

"Why are we stopping?" Amber asked Dale.

"I am guessing camp out for the night…it will be dark soon," Dale answered.

Amber nodded and exited the RV. Everyone was getting out of their cars and stretching, before a night of sleeping in them she presumed. She walked around to the other side of the RV and leaned against it. She began to get lost in thought as she stared up at the sky.

These were the first people she had been around in weeks. The first people she had really spoken to in a month. She was out of her element. She was so used to being alone, to not trusting other survivors. She didn't know what to think of this new group she was with for the time being. They seemed okay, but she knew better.

She heard hushed voices in front of the RV. They must not have known she was there because she quickly figured out they were talking about her.

"Nope, don't trust her…" she could tell that was Daryl. _Stupid redneck._

"We don't even know her yet," the other voice was Rick.

"Exactly! So why did we bring her along then?" Daryl groaned.

She didn't wait around to hear any more of their argument about her. As she stepped back around the RV, their conversation came to an immediate halt. They both looked at her, Rick giving her a small smile, while Daryl just scowled at her. She went into RV without a word to either of them and decided to try and get some sleep. However, she knew she probably wouldn't get any that night. She wished she could just be her old self again and not so unfriendly.

She thought about what Daryl had said. _He didn't trust her_. That was probably for the best anyway. Not because she didn't trust them either. She was still unsure on that.

_Because, no one should trust me, not after everything I have done._


End file.
